Originally Posted by
fweasel
I would reinforce the transom on that hull with a piece of 2mm carbon fiber plate cut to fit. Remove the rudder and all mounting hardware, sand and clean the inside surface, then mock up a template made from paper. Transfer to the carbon plate and cut it out. Sand the glassy surfaces of the CF plate with coarse sand paper to improve adhesion. Tape off the holes on the outside of the hull with painters tape, then glue the plate to the inside of the hull with a generous amount of epoxy. Do not use fast curing epoxy, it's brittle. I prefer West System G-Flex or standard JB Weld would work here as well. Press it into place and clamp if you have the tools to do so. Once it sets, I would run an additional bead of epoxy around the perimeter of the plate to fill in the rest of the rudder mount standoff on the inside of the hull, that is, if there wasn't enough epoxy poured in the first place and there are still exposed edges. Once it's all cured, re drill all necessary holes, starting with a smaller pilot bit, and file to the correct size to limit the water leak potential. Remount the hardware, use a small amount of clear bathroom silicone caulk to seal the holes, and torque down the hardware accordingly.
An alternative method would be to cover the holes on the outside of the hull with painters tape, and fill in the rudder standoff area on the inside of the hull with a mix of slow cure epoxy and chopped fiber, carbon or glass, until its flush with the sides of the transom. Once cured, redrill your holes, install longer mounting bolts, and reinstall the rudder assembly. If it were my hull, I would use the CF plate method.
Bookmarks